Les Paul once lived in Oakland and built his dream home in nearby Mahwah. I’ve written of this before and was shocked to learn what has happened to his dream. I was lucky to have been shown Les Pauls’s home recording studio and have pleasant memories of this iconic inventor, musician, and performer. Les’s son, Rusty, gave me a tour many years ago along with my Oakland friend (and guitar master) Emmett Finley. As aspiring rock star teens who grew up in Oakland, the legend of Les Paul loomed large for us.
Gene Paul says his family was given no warning before the destruction of the Mahwah property where his father pioneered multitrack recording and electric-guitar technology — and where guitar legends including Jimmy Page and Eddie Van Halen came to visit.
The property at 78 Deerhaven Road was recently demolished following a reported $990,000 sale to private developers. For music historians, the site was far more than a family residence: It was the working laboratory where Paul developed groundbreaking recording technology and experimented with innovations that helped shape the modern electric guitar.
Mary Ford and Les Paul relax in the living room of their Oakland, NJ, home December 12, 1953. The window of the large room overlooks miles of countryside. The couple, made famous by their guitar-and-voice records in which the two of sound like a band and chorus, make their recordings at home under a multiple-recording technique which Paul invented and engineered.
Further reading:
Stolen Memories – Emmett Finley
Popular Les Paul exhibit, complete with actual guitars and recording equipment from the home studio of the late Les Paul, a musical and electronics genius who called Mahwah home. https://www.mybergen.com/25-places-to-visit-in-bergen-county-nj-in-2017/
Musician Lester “Rusty” G. Paul, who died Dec. 31, was the son of the late, legendary Les Paul. https://www.northjersey.com/story/life/announcements/obituaries/2016/01/06/rusty-paul-son-of-les-paul-dies-at-74/94237402/
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